Games ceremony set to impress

Asian gold medalist Bui Thi Nhung will carry the flame to light the Asian Indoor Games (AIG) torch at the opening ceremony in My Dinh Stadium on October 30.

The top women’s high jumper will march with the flame from President Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum along Hanoi’s main streets before approaching the stadium.

Organiser said the opening ceremony will impress the over 40,000 participants of the biggest indoor games in Asia.

The AIG traffic sub-committee has mobilised over 500 cars and buses for the events in Hanoi alone. They will in charge of traffic control on the roads around venues to keep streets free of traffic jams during the 10-day competition.

The organizing committee has successfully tested the information system for the Games at 27 venues in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong and Quang Ninh.- VOVNEWS

AIG’s flag hoisting ceremony opens

The flag hoisting ceremony for sports delegations taking part in the third Asian Indoor Games (AIG) took place at Olympics Square, in Ha Noi’s My Dinh National Stadium yesterday.

As planned, the ceremony for the 41 countries and territories that will compete at the 10-day event will last for three days, through tomorrow.

The flag raising ceremony for the Viet Nam team was held yesterday afternoon with the participation of the nation’s most outstanding athletes.

Viet Nam will compete at the Games with the aim of reaching eighth place in the overall medal tally, with 15-20 gold medals. - VNS

Health board to prepares for AIG

The third Asian Indoor Games’ Doping Test and Health Board has established 53 ad hoc groups to work the event at gymnasiums, press centres and hotels.

Each group includes two doctors, two nurses and one driver who will work 24 hours a day.

The Doping Test and Health Board has set up projects to prevent an H1N1 flu pandemic.

As far as doping is concerned, around 500 samples will be taken, instead of the usual 200. - VNS

Losses thwart home team : Vietnam 2 - 8 Malaysia

HCM CITY — Viet Nam futsal’s desire to win a medal for the first time at a continental competition suffered a major setback when home teams were hammered by the Malaysians and the Thais.

Viet Nam men’s team lost 8-2 to Malaysia in the opener at the men’s futsal event at the third Asian Indoor Games, yesterday in HCM City.

Viet Nam, the runners-up at the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Futsal Championship four months ago, started off well with an opener only two minutes into the first half, after Malaysian goalkeeper Mohd Hafis Awang allowed Quan to control the ball and tap it in.

However, Malaysia stayed calm and brought the heat. The home team’s hastiness in widening the score exposed many lethal openings in their defence to Malaysia, who opted to defend in Only three minutes later, Muizzudin Mohd Haris converted a cross from Mohd Ruzaley Abdul Aziz to put Malaysia ahead 2-1 before the break.

With the difference of only one goal, nearly 2,000 home fans waited for a comeback in the second half from the home team, but things just went from bad to worse.

Malaysia continued to punish Viet Nam when Jamhuri Zainuddin and Qaiser Heshaam Abdul Kadir scored a goal each just four minutes into the second half to make the score 4-1.

Pattaya decided to take risks by replacing goalkeeper Dang Phuoc Anh with a fifth player, but the change proved fatal when Malaysian skipper Addie Azwan Zainal took full advantage of the empty goal to add two, putting Malaysia in the clear 6-1.

Quan brought home another goal, but Muizzudin Mohd Haris and Mohd Ruzaley Abdul Aziz each scored again to secure a brutal 8-2 victory.

To have a place in the quarter finals, Viet Nam must win against Bahrain and Jordan in their remaining matches.

On the women’s side, the Viet Nam team also lost 6-1 to the Thai women in the opener at the third Asian Indoor Games yesterday at Tan Binh Gymnasium.

The Thai team proved too strong for the home team, who were buoyed by thousands of young students cheering them on.

Sasicha Phothiwong tapped in a cross from Siranya Srimanee on the left wing to open the score four minutes inside the first half, and Orathai Srimanee collected the ball from Siranya’s corner to drive home another just two minutes later. — VNS

Official Result of the Malaysian Futsal team. - 3rd AIG Hanoi 2009

Women

1. Player No. 5 (Nurul Aishah Mohd Nor) scored 1st goal at 35th Minute (Second Half)
2. Player No. 6 (Shahila Yunus) scored 2nd Goal at 39th minute (Second Half)

Results: Jordan 5 Malaysia 2

*next game group B, Malaysia vs. Vietnam (Friday) dan Thailand (Sunday).




Men's

1. Player No. 7 (Addie Azwan Zainal) - 2 goals
2. Player No. 9 (Qaiser Heshaam Abdul Kadir - 2 goals
3. Player No. 11 (Muizuddin Mohd Haris) - 2 goals
4. Player No. 8 (Mohd Ruzaley Abd Aziz) - 1 goal
5.Player No. 13 (Jamhuri Zainuddin) - 1 goal

Results: Malaysia 8 Vietnam 2

*next game for Group C, Malaysia vs. Jordan (Friday) dan Bahrain (Sunday).

Heartbeat of the 3rd AI Games

Located at the Hanoi Exhibition and Fair Center, the Operations Center of the 3rd AI Games was officially put into operation on the 24th of October, 2009. The Center has many functional rooms and offices: a Conference room, Sport Techinical Sub-committee, Reception and Protocol Sub-committee, Logistics and Public Services, Transportation Sub-committee and Information Technology and Communication Sub-committee offices.

AIG III: Cabaran skuad futsal negara bermula

SKUAD futsal lelaki dan wanita kebangsaan akan turun beraksi pada perlawanan pertama mereka pada temasya Sukan Dalam Dewan Asia 2009 (AIG III) di Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam petang ini.

Skuad lelaki yang dibimbing P. Balakrishnan akan bertemu Vietnam pada aksi sulung Kumpulan C pada pukul 5 petang ini (waktu Malaysia) sebelum turun menentang Jordan (Jumaat) dan Bahrain (Ahad).

Malaysia perlu menamatkan saingan peringkat kumpulan di dua tangga teratas untuk mara ke suku akhir, pencapaian yang dicatat pada edisi sebelumnya di Macau pada 2007.

Skuad wanita pula yang dibimbing Chiew Chun Yong bakal turun pada perlawanan sulung dalam Kumpulan B bertemu Jordan pada pukul 5 petang ini (waktu Malaysia) sebelum menentang Vietnam (Jumaat) dan Thailand (Ahad).

Dua pasukan teratas Kumpulan A dan B terus layak ke separuh akhir kerana kategori wanita disertai lapan pasukan.

Skuad lelaki negara dianggotai tiga tonggak senior, Addie Azwan Zainal, Fadhil Yusoff dan Jamhuri Zainuddin serta pemain-pemain lain iaitu Firdaus Razali, Safar Mohamad, Ruzaley Abd. Aziz, R. Deventhiran, Fairus Mohd. Noor, Muizzudin Haris, Qaiser Heshaam Kadir dan Fadzil Karnim.

Turut disenaraikan tiga muka baru iaitu Khairul Rizuan Harif Pagilah, Hafis Awang dan Khairil Effendy Bahrin.

Skuad wanita negara pula menampilkan enam pemain dari skuad Sukan SEA 2007 iaitu Nor Diana Hamid, Shahila Yunus, Farahiyah Ridzuan, Noor Asyikin Mohamad Noor, Siti Norazizah Jamal dan Nurul Aishah Mohd. Nor.

Baki lapan lagi pemain terdiri daripada Denisa Khoo Fern Ying, Angela Kais, Rina Jordana Adnan, Steffi Sarge Kaur, Noorha- yanti Salleh, Rebecca Jane Harding, Farhana Abdullah dan Nor Faizah Md. Akair.

AIG III: Skuad futsal negara sasar pusingan kedua

SKUAD futsal lelaki dan wanita kebangsaan meletakkan sasaran untuk melepasi saingan peringkat kumpulan pada temasya Sukan Dalam Dewan Asia 2009 (AIG III) di Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam yang akan bermula Rabu depan.

Pengurus skuad futsal kebangsaan, Hamidin Mohd. Amin berkata, skuad lelaki diharap sekurang-kurangnya mengulangi kejayaan ke suku akhir pada edisi 2007 di Macau manakala skuad wanita yang terkandas pada peringkat kumpulan ketika itu berpeluang cerah ke separuh akhir kali ini.



"Dua tahun lalu, skuad lelaki tewas kepada Uzbekistan pada suku akhir. Diharap kehadiran beberapa pemain baru dapat meningkatkan prestasi pasukan dan kita dapat memperbaiki rekod tersebut di Vietnam nanti.

"Bagi skuad wanita pula, mereka telah mendapat bebe- rapa pemain baru yang berkualiti dan akan digabung dengan beberapa senior dari skuad Sukan SEA 2007.

"Saya lihat prestasi mereka kini lebih mantap," katanya pada sidang media di Hotel Hilton, Petaling Jaya malam kelmarin.

Pada AIG III nanti, skuad lelaki negara yang diundi dalam Kumpulan C akan bertemu Vietnam pada 28 Okto- ber diikuti Jordan (30 Okto- ber) dan Bahrain (1 November).

Dua pasukan teratas akan mara ke suku akhir.

Senarai 14 pemain lelaki dianggotai tiga tonggak senior, Addie Azwan Zainal, Fadhil Yusoff dan Jamhuri Zainuddin serta pemain-pemain lain iaitu Firdaus Razali, Safar Mohamad, Ruzaley Abd. Aziz, R. Deventhiran, Fairus Mohd. Noor, Muizzudin Haris, Qaiser Heshaam Kadir dan Fadzil Karnim.

Turut disenaraikan, tiga muka baru iaitu Khairul Rizuan Harif Pagilah, Hafis Awang dan Khairil Effendy Bahrin.

"Skuad kita kali ini ramai pemain muda. Mereka telah menampilkan prestasi yang amat baik sepanjang dua bulan latihan ini," kata jurulatih skuad lelaki, P. Balakrishnan.

Skuad wanita pula yang dibimbing Chiew Chun Yong diundi dalam Kumpulan B dan akan bertemu Jordan pada 28 Oktober, Vietnam (30 Oktober) dan Thailand (1 November).

Dua pasukan teratas akan layak ke separuh akhir.

Hanya enam pemain wanita dari skuad Sukan SEA 2007 masih dikekalkan iaitu Nor Diana Hamid, Shahila Yunus, Farahiyah Ridzuan, Noor Asyikin Mohamad Noor, Siti Norazizah Jamal dan Nurul Aishah Mohd. Nor.

Baki lapan pemain terdiri daripada tenaga baru iaitu Denisa Khoo Fern Ying, Angela Kais, Rina Jordana Adnan, Steffi Sarge Kaur, Noorhayanti Salleh, Rebecca Jane Harding, Farhana Abdullah dan Nor Faizah Md. Akair.

Futsal at the 2009 Asian Indoor Games

Futsal at the 2009 Asian Indoor Games will be held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Click HERE for more info.

Originating from traditional football, futsal is a team sport. That combinating of good skills and fast speed.

1. Date: from 30th October to 4th November.

2. Venue: Phu Tho Gymnasium (men) and Tan Binh Gymnasium (women) - Hochiminh City.

3. Events: Men and women.

Phu Tho Gymnasium (men)- Hochiminh City

Tan Binh Gymnasium (women) - Hochiminh City

OCM To Send 150-Member Contingent For Asian Indoor Games

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 13 (Bernama) -- A 150 Malaysian contingent will participate in eight sports at the third edition of the Asian Indoor Games in Vietnam from Oct 30 to Nov 8.

The contingent, comprising 90 athletes and 60 officials, will be participating in the games that features 39 other countries.

The eight sports hosted are Dance sports, Indoor Petanque, Hoop Sepaktakraw, Indoor Kabaddi, Pencak Silat, Futsal (men and women), Dragon and Lion Dance (Dragon, Southern Lion, Northern Lion) and bowling.

Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) president Tunku Tan Sri Imran Tuanku Ja'afar said the contingent no specific gold medal target was set for the games as they were non-Olympic sports.

"Nevertheless, I hope the athletes competing in their respective sports will bring home some medals as it is an honour to represent Malaysia at an international event," said Tunku at the flag handing ceremony here on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Chef-de-Mission N Shanmugarajah said though there was no specific medal target, he believed the athletes would excel in the games.

The games will be staged at three cities in Vietnam, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh and Hai Duong.

Historically, the games came about when the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) raised the idea of an Asian Indoor Games in 2001, aimed at further promoting and arousing interest in sports activities among Asian people.

The first Asian Indoor Games was held in Thailand in 2005 and the second was hosted by Macao in 2007.

-- BERNAMA

HCM City ready for indoor games

16:17' 13/10/2009 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – Preparations for the third Asian Indoor Games - the biggest sporting event of the year - are almost complete, the games' organising board in HCM City said. Nguyen Hung, deputy director of the city's Department of Sports, Culture and Tourism, said that 10 competition venues and three practice venues had been fully equipped. The city has also taken care of transportation and health issues. Hung said, adding that some streets would be resurfaced to make travelling to competition venues more convenient, and also that transport police would escort teams. Nguyen Tuan Viet, head of the ceremony's sub-committee in HCM City, said that finishing touches were being made to the opening ceremony preparations. An AIG park, which will open on October 29 and close on November 7, will display information relating to previous AIG Games, as well as information on HCM City's sports, economy and society. The park will have an area for folk games, a stage with nightly programmes, a dining area offering international cuisine and an area for displaying made-in-Viet Nam products. The park will also have a model of Ha Long Bay. The park will be fully finished on October 22, Viet said. Nguyen Hong, director of the International Broadcasting Centre (IBC) in HCM City, which will be based at Phu Tho Gymnasium, said that finishing touches to the centre would be completed on October 26. A campaign to collect two millions signatures in support of the Games was launched on Sunday in HCM City. Sports fans across the country can sign the A2 book or go online at www.2trieuchuky.yume.vn. Hoang Vinh Giang, vice head of the Games' organising committee, said 37 countries and territories would be coming to HCM City. The World Sports Corporation, the sponsoring consultant for the games' organising board, said major sponsors included Viet Nam Post and Telecommunication (VNPT), Tan Hiep Phat Beverage Corporation and Viet Nam Insurance Corporation (Bao Viet). The Games in Viet Nam will be the last Asian Indoor Games. The sporting venue will later be combined with the Martial Arts Games and called the Asian Indoor-Martial Arts Games in 2004. Qatar, Bahrain and Turkmenistan are bidding to host the event. VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

Indoor arena put to the test

HA NOI — Viet Nam will host an indoor athletics tournament at the 3,100-seat My Dinh Indoor Athletics venue from tomorrow.

The two-day event – a pre-Asian Indoor Games tournament – aims to test the new indoor sports complex in preparation for the games, to be held in Viet Nam for the first time, from October 30 to November 8.

Overseen by the Olympic Council of Asia and Asian Athletics Federation, this week’s event will attract the participation of Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia, who will compete in running, high jump, long jump and shot-put.

Duong Duc Thuy, head of athletics section of the National Sports Administration, said some of Viet Nam’s top short and medium-distance runners would be absent from the event because they were in training for the main event. They included Southeast Asian Games gold medallists Vu Thi Huong, Truong Thanh Hang and Nguyen Dinh Cuong.

The new sports venue, located in the My Dinh Athletes Training Centre in western Ha Noi, is one of the most modern in the country and a landmark in the capital. It was built in preparation for the Asian Games.

It measures 31,000sq.m, will hold 3,000 spectators and accommodate 13 field and track events for the games.

The Asian Games events will be held in Ha Noi, HCM City, Hai Phong, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong and Quang Ninh.

The Asian Games are expected to attract over 4,000 athletes, coaches and officials from 45 countries and territories, who will compete in 20 official sports and one demonstration event. — VNS

Bowling / Asian Indoor Games: Holloway puts faith in youngsters

Ajitpal Singh

NATIONAL coach Holloway Cheah has opted for youth for the Asian Indoor Games in Vietnam on Oct 30-Nov 8.

The men's team consists national champion Syafiq Ridhwan, Kang Bo Long, Kelvin Keong and Rodson Tong while Sharon Koh, Sin Li Jane, Fatin Syazliana and Tengku Emanina Laily make up the women's team.

"I see the tournament as more beneficial to the development of the younger bowlers. It will provide them the needed experience and exposure to progress," said Holloway yesterday.

"I am doing this because I want to have more options ahead of next year's Guangzhou Asian Games and the Men's World Championships in Germany.

Syafiq Ridhwan is the most experienced bowler in the Asian Indoor men’s squad.

"However, those who make an impact at the Indoor Games will not necessarily be considered for the Asian Games and world meet. They need to impress in a few other tournaments first before being considered."

Syafiq is the most experienced bowler in the Asian Indoor men's squad, having won several international titles including last year's PBAB Bevida-Storm International Classic.

Sharon, as an elite squad member, will lead the women's team. The left-handed bowler won the Singapore Open title recently.

Meanwhile, Zulmazran Zulkifli, a two-time Malaysian Open champion and World Ranking Masters winner Siti Safiyah Amirah Abdul Rahman will be based in Malacca 10 days before the start of the AMF World Cup (Nov 14-21).

"We are starting early as it will help them adapt to the venue (Malacca International Bowling Centre (MIBC)."